Communication circuit for flyback power converter with synchronous rectifier

ABSTRACT

A method for communicating with a power converter comprises initiating a communication sequence by sensing a first distortion of a sensed waveform during a discharge period of a first power transfer cycle of the power converter. The sensed waveform is proportional to a secondary current of the power converter. At a primary side of the power converter, a data bit is received from a secondary side of the power converter, by sensing a second distortion to represent one state of the data bit and sending an absence of the second distortion to represent another state of the data bit. The secondary distortion is applied to the secondary current during the discharge period of a subsequent power transfer cycle.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a utility application claiming priority toco-pending U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/354,257 filed onJun. 24, 2016 entitled “COMMUNICATION CIRCUIT FOR FLYBACK POWERCONVERTER WITH SYNCHRONOUS RECTIFIER,” the entirety of which isincorporated by reference herein.

FIELD

The disclosure relates generally to an adaptive power converter, andmore specifically to a communication circuit for transferring messagesfrom the secondary side to the primary side of the adaptive powerconverter.

BACKGROUND

The prevalence of adaptive travel adaptors (TA) and fast chargers isincreasing due to the popularity of mobile electronic systems. In anadaptive TA system, a traditional flyback power converter operates as apower stage with a protocol Integrated Circuit (IC) providing aninterface between the TA and a sink device (e.g., a mobile phone, ordevice that “sinks” current supplied by the power converter). Typically,the protocol IC receives and decodes a command sent from the sinkdevice, and in response, the adaptive TA system changes an operatingcharacteristic of the power converter.

The changes to the operating characteristic can be implemented at thesecondary side of the adaptive TA system, however from a power stageoptimization perspective it is preferred to be implemented at a primaryside, to realize a truly adaptive power delivery based on a powerrequest from the sink device.

Conventional adaptive TA systems use an optical isolator (e.g.optocoupler) for transferring a protocol message from the secondary sideto the primary side, thus increasing cost and reducing systemreliability. The secondary side protocol IC receives the protocolmessage from the sink device, encodes and sends the protocol message tothe primary side through the optical isolator. The primary side controlIC receives the encoded protocol message from the optical isolator,further decodes the message and responds by changing an operatingcharacteristic of the TA system from the primary side. Because theprotocol IC is located at the secondary side, a reliable and costeffective circuit and method are needed to realize effectivecommunication between the secondary side and primary side in theadaptive power system.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention is illustrated by way of example and is notlimited by the accompanying figures, in which like references indicatesimilar elements. Elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicityand clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an adaptive flyback power system with asynchronous rectifier according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of a communication circuitaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a graphical view of the switching signals S_(W), S_(W) _(_)_(SR), and the sensing signal V_(S) without distortion during thedischarge time T_(DIS) according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 4 is a graphical view of the switching signals S_(W), S_(W) _(_)_(SR), and the sensing signal V_(S) distorted during the discharge timeT_(DIS) according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart representation of a method for communicationbetween the secondary side and the primary side of a flyback powerconverter, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a graphical view of the switching signals S_(W), S_(W) _(_)_(SR), and the sensing signal V_(S) of a communication sequence during aDiscontinuous Conduction Mode (DCM) condition in accordance with anembodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a graphical view of the switching signals S_(W), S_(W) _(_)_(SR), and the sensing signal V_(S) of a communication sequence during adeep DCM condition in accordance with an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 8 is a graphical view of the switching signals S_(W), S_(W) _(_)_(SR), and the sensing signal V_(S) of a communication sequence during aDCM condition in accordance with another embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 9 is a functional block diagram of a detection circuit according toan embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 is a schematic view of the discharge time detection circuitshown in FIG. 9 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 11 is a schematic view of the delay cell shown in FIG. 10 accordingto an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 12 is a graphical view of the switching signal S_(W), the sensingsignal V_(S), signals SMP1 and SMP2 according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 13 is a schematic view of the turn-on detection circuit shown inFIG. 9 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 14 is a graphical view of the switching signal S_(W), the sensingsignal V_(S), signals S_(BNK) and SMP2 according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of systems and methods described herein provide for areliable and cost effective communication circuit and method fortransferring messages between the secondary side and the primary side ofan adaptive power converter without requiring optical isolation (e.g.,with an optocoupler). The primary and secondary side of the powerconverter refers to the two sides of the converter that are galvanicallydecoupled by a transformer.

A new Pre-defined Synchronous Rectifier (SR) switch encoding method canremove the requirement for an optocoupler for message communication fromthe secondary side to the primary side in an adaptive flyback powerconverter. The proposed circuit and method will make use of adaptiveflyback power converter without adding any extra components to realize acost effective and more reliable secondary side to primary sidecommunication. Example embodiments are shown throughout this disclosurefor a flyback Pulse Width Modulated (PWM) power converter, however theteachings of this disclosure are also applicable to a forward PWMconverter.

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of an adaptive flyback power system 10configured to convert an input voltage (V_(IN)) 12 to an output busvoltage (V_(BUS)) 14 with synchronous rectification. The embodiment 10of the flyback power converter has a transformer (T₁) 16 including aprimary winding (N_(P)) 18, a secondary winding (N_(S)) 20 and anauxiliary winding (N_(A)) 22. The transformer 16 separates a primaryside, including the components connected to the primary winding 18, froma secondary side, including the components connected to the secondarywinding 20.

The power system 10 includes a primary side controller 30 powered by asupply voltage (V_(CC1)) 32. The supply voltage 32 is derived from anauxiliary voltage (V_(AUX)) 34, which correlates to the bus voltage 14.The auxiliary voltage 34 is rectified by a diode 36 and stored on afiltering capacitor 38. The primary side controller 30 is coupled to thetransformer 16 via a power transistor (Q₁) 40, and is configured toswitch the transformer 16 with a switching signal (Sw) 42 to transferenergy from the primary winding 18 to the secondary winding 20 andauxiliary winding 22. When the power transistor 40 is activated, aprimary current flows through a current sense resistor (R_(CS)) 44 todevelop a voltage (V_(CS)) 46, which is monitored by the primary sidecontroller 30. The voltage (V_(S)) 52 on a voltage-sensing terminal ofthe primary side controller 30 is coupled to the auxiliary winding 22through a voltage divider including resistors (R_(VS1)) 48 and (R_(VS2))50 for detecting a percentage of the auxiliary voltage 34, andgenerating the sensing signal 52.

The secondary side of the power system 10 includes a synchronousrectifier controller 60 powered by a supply voltage (V_(CC2)) developedacross a filtering capacitor (Co) 62. The supply voltage is equivalentto the bus voltage 14. The secondary winding 20 is coupled to the busvoltage 14 terminal of a receptacle (connector) 80, such as a USBreceptacle, for providing the bus voltage 14 to a sink device (e.g.,mobile phone) via a cable, such as a USB cable. The second terminal ofthe secondary winding 20 is also coupled to an SR switch or transistor(Q_(SR)) 64 and a body diode (D_(SR)) 66, the transistor 64 beingcontrolled by the synchronous rectifier controller 60 with the switchingsignal (S_(W) _(_) _(SR)) 68, thereby gating the bus current (I_(BUS))70 flowing between the bus voltage 14 and a ground 82. In variousembodiments, the ground 82 is a same ground reference as used by thesynchronous rectifier controller 60 and the primary side controller 30.In other embodiments, the primary side controller 30 has a differentground reference than that used by the synchronous rectifier controller60.

The positive data terminal DP 84 and negative data terminal DN 86 of thesecondary side control circuit are coupled to the data terminals DP 84and DN 86 of the receptacle 80 to receive and decode the message(command) sent from the sink device. In some embodiments, thesynchronous rectifier controller 60 also includes a bleeder circuit(e.g., a resistor R_(BLD)), 88 to increase a current demand on the powersystem 10 when a deep DCM operation is detected. Specifically, currentis sunk through the bleeder circuit 88 in parallel with the current sunkby the sink device (not shown) connected to the receptacle 80.

FIG. 2 shows a functional block diagram of a communication circuit 90according to an embodiment of the present invention. The embodiment ofthe communication circuit 90 transfers a message from the synchronousrectifier 60, on the secondary side, to the primary side controller 30,on the primary side, without requiring an optocoupler. The communicationcircuit 90 comprises a protocol decoder 110, a message encoder 114, aswitching circuit 116, a detection circuit 92, and a message decoder 96.The synchronous rectifier controller 60 comprises the protocol decoder110, the message encoder 114, the switching circuit 116, and asynchronous rectifier-controller (SR controller) 112. The primary sidecontroller comprises the detection circuit 92 providing a Switch ModePower (SMP) signal 94 to the message decoder 96. The message decoder 96is connected to a regulation circuit 98 and a protection circuit 104. Inan example embodiment, the regulation circuit 98 includes a VoltageControl (VC) circuit 100 and a Current Control (CC) circuit 102.

The protocol decoder 110 is coupled to the data terminals DP 84 and DN86 to receive and decode the protocol message (command) sent from thesink device as a differential signal. In some embodiment, the messageencoder 114 is implemented in the synchronous rectifier controller 60that receives the decoded protocol message (command) from the protocoldecoder 110 and encodes the decoded message (command) by a pre-definedswitching sequence of the SR switch 64. The pre-defined switchingsequence of the SR switch 64 transfers the encoded message to theprimary side in a form of analog signal via the transformer 16. The SRcontroller 112 generates a switching signal 68 for the SR switch 64.

The switching circuit 116 is coupled to the SR controller 112 and themessage encoder 114 to receive the control signal and the encodedmessage. The switching circuit 116 generates the switching signal 68 inresponse to the control signal and the encoded message to switch the SRswitch 64. The switching circuit 116 is a logic circuit according to anembodiment of the present invention.

The detection circuit 92 detects the encoded message through the voltage52 on the voltage-sensing terminal to provide the SMP signal 94. Themessage decoder 96 decodes the signal SMP 94 to retrieve the protocolmessage sent from the secondary side. The primary side control circuitthen responds to the retrieved protocol message to regulate the busvoltage 14 with the CV circuit 100, to regulate the bus current 70 withthe CC circuit 102 or to change a protection mode with the protectioncircuit 104. Non-limiting examples of protection modes includeover-voltage protection of the bus voltage 14, under-voltage protectionof the bus voltage 14 and over-current protection of the bus current 70.

FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are graphical views comparing the voltage (V_(S)) 52on the voltage sensing terminal, the switching signal (S_(W)) 42 fromthe primary side controller 30 and the switching signal (S_(W) _(_)_(SR)) 68 from the synchronous rectifier controller 60 for an embodimenthaving no distortion during a discharge period (see FIG. 3) comparedwith an embodiment having distortion during the discharge period (seeFIG. 4).

Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 3, the SR switch 64 is controlled toprevent distortion on the waveform of the voltage 52 on thevoltage-sensing terminal during the discharge time (T_(DIS)) 132. Thetrailing edge 120 of the switching signal 42 stops the current flowingthrough the primary winding 18 and starts the current discharge throughthe secondary winding 20, (from the decay of the magnetic flux in thetransformer 16 formed during from the primary current). When the SRswitch 64 is activated as shown by 122, the sensing signal is as shownby the waveform 124. Following the discharge period 132, (after themagnetic flux has been depleted from the core of the transformer 16),the secondary current continues to resonate as shown at 126.

When the SR switch 64 is deactivated as shown by 128, the sensing signalwaveform increases as shown by 130 due to the current 70 flowing throughthe diode (D_(SR)) 66. In various embodiments, the SR switch 64 isdeactivated at a zero crossing point where the sensing signal isminimal. In contrast to the waveforms shown in FIG. 3, FIG. 4 shows adiscontinuity during the discharge period 132 caused by the SR switchtransitioning between being active at 140 and inactive at 144, resultingin the waveform at 142 making a step transition to 146. Detection of thestep between 142 and 146 or the absence thereof, is used to encodeeither a logic “1” or logic “0” respectively, or conversely a logic “0”or logic “1” respectively. In some embodiments, a pulse is encoded bytransitioning the switching signal from the active state 140 to aninactive state 144 and back to the active state 140. Either the leadingedge or falling edge of the pulse is detected to determine the presenceof an alternate state on the waveform of the sensing signal.

FIG. 5 shows a flowchart representation of a method for communicationbetween the secondary side and primary side of a power converter. Atstep 150, the transfer is started by detecting a first distortion of thewaveform of the sensing signal 52. In one example embodiment, the firstdistortion includes a step function on the waveform, formed byactivating the switching signal 68. In another embodiment, the firstdistortion includes one or more pulses on the waveform, formed bypulsing the switching signal 68 one or more times accordingly. At step152, the data are transferred between the secondary side and the primaryside by receiving a protocol message from the sink device attached tothe receptacle 80, decoding the message, encoding the message as one ormore data bits and conditionally distorting the waveform at the voltagesensing terminal 52. In one embodiment, waveform is distorted once perdischarge cycle for a plurality of discharge cycles, until the messagehas been passed to the primary side controller 30. In one example,passing a message encoded as “1101” results in distorting the waveformfor the first, second and fourth sequential discharge cycle, (similar toFIG. 4, and not distorting the waveform for the third discharge cycle,(similar to FIG. 3). In another embodiment, the message “1101” resultsin distorting only the third discharge cycle, wherein a distortionrepresents a logical “0”. At step 154, the transfer is ended bydistorting the waveform of the voltage-sensing terminal 52 one or moretimes during a discharge cycle.

In various embodiments, the end of transfer 154 step is omitted and thenumber of discharge cycles required to complete the data transfer 152 isprogrammed or defined by the power system before the start of transfer150. In other embodiments, the end of transfer 154 step is retained asan acknowledgment from the secondary side to the primary side that thedata transfer 152 has completed, in addition to defining in theprimary-side controller, the number of discharge cycles required tocomplete the data transfer 152. In one example, the primary-sidecontroller 30 has a register programmed during manufacture of thecontroller to define the number of discharge cycles required for datatransfer 152. In another embodiment, the primary-side controller 30 isprogrammed by the user to determine the required number of dischargecycles.

FIG. 6 shows the three steps of FIG. 5 for a communication sequence of aflyback power converter operating in a DCM condition, including thevoltage (V_(S)) 52 on the voltage sensing terminal, the switching signal(S_(W)) 42 from the primary side controller 30 and the switching signal(S_(W) _(_) _(SR)) 68 from the synchronous rectifier 60. Referring toFIG. 1 and FIG. 6, the communication sequence begins with the “Start ofTransfer” step 150 initiated by the synchronous rectifier controller 60pulsing the SR switch at 160 to create a waveform distortion 162, and at164 to create a waveform distortion 166. In this example embodiment, thetwo distortions 162 and 166, detected during the single discharge period132, serve as a start flag to configure the primary side controller 30to advance to the “Data Transfer” step 152 to receive a message. Inanother embodiment, only one distortion is applied and detected duringthe start of transfer 150.

The synchronous rectifier controller 60 on the secondary side willencode the protocol command as series of is and Os following apre-defined encoding method to control the SR switch 64. The primaryside controller 30 will detect the encoded message through the waveformof the sensing signal (V_(S)) 52 using the detection circuit 92, andfurther decode with the message decoder 96 to retrieve the protocolmessage. In one embodiment, one bit is transferred in one switchingcycle of the switching signal S_(W) 42 by activating the SR switch 64 at172 corresponding to the waveform at 174, then deactivate the SR switch64 at 176 to cause the waveform distortion 178. In another embodiment,where the protocol message requires 8 bits for encoding, 8 sequentialswitching cycles of the switching signal S_(W) are used to transfer theencoded data to the primary side controller.

In another embodiment, the SR switch 64 is capable of being pulsedmultiple times during the discharge time T_(DIS) of one switching cycleof the switching signal S_(W), and therefore multiple bits aretransferred in one switching cycle of the switching signal S_(W). In oneexample, four bits are transferred in a single discharge cycle, wherethe SR switch 64 is pulsed for a logic “1” and not pulsed for a logic“0.” The primary-side controller receives four bits in one dischargecycle by timing the arrival of each of the four bits with respect to thestart of the discharge cycle and thereby extracting four bits. When thesynchronous rectifier controller needs 8-bits to encode the protocolmessage, then only 2 switching cycles of the switching signal S_(W)(e.g., two discharge cycles) are required to transfer the encoded datato the primary side controller.

In one embodiment, after the secondary side transfers the encodedprotocol messages, the communication procedure enters the “End ofTransfer” 154 step by the synchronous rectifier controller 60 togglingthe SR switch twice at 180 and 184 to cause waveform distortions 182 and186 respectively in the same discharge period 132. The two distortionsare detected as an end flag to exit the communication sequence. Inanother embodiment, only one distortion is used in the discharge cycleto signal the “End of Transfer” 154.

Turning now to FIG. 7 with continued reference to FIG. 1 and FIG. 6, acommunication sequence is described for a power system operating in adeep DCM condition. During the start of transfer step 150, a deep DCMcondition is detected at a very light load, (or no load), condition bycomparing the switching frequency of the primary side controller to adeep DCM threshold value. In various embodiments, the switchingfrequency of the synchronous rectifier is measured to infer theswitching frequency of the primary side controller, to which itcorrelates. In some embodiments, the deep DCM threshold value is 100 Hz.Using the previously described embodiments, where only one encoded bitis transferred in one power transfer (or switching) cycle, 8 switchingcycles would be required to transfer an 8-bit encoded message protocol.Requiring 8 switching cycles is very long for the power converter systemto respond to the protocol command sent by the sink device (e.g., theslow response may affect system stability), thus a new messagecommunication mode procedure is needed for a power system operating indeep DCM condition.

During the start of transfer step 150, the system waits for a shortperiod of time after the voltage on the voltage-sensing terminal 52 nolonger includes valley points, (190, 192 and 194 for example). Thesynchronous rectifier detects the absence of valley points by measuringa voltage change in the bus voltage 14, and then initiates a pulse,before the next activation of the switching signal 42, to signify astart flag for the deep DCM condition. The primary-side controllerdetects the start flag as a waveform distortion at the voltage-sensingterminal 52. After initiating the pulse, the synchronous rectifiercontroller connects a bleeder circuit to increase a load on the powerconverter, thereby forcing the power converter from the deep DCMcondition into a DCM condition with a higher switching frequency. Invarious embodiments, the bleeding circuit includes a bleeding resistor(R_(BLD)) 88 and a switch coupled between the bleeding resistor 88 andthe ground. The switch is implemented in the secondary side controlcircuit according to an embodiment of the present invention. The datatransfer and the end of transfer are the same as the communicationsequence shown in FIG. 6. Referring to FIG. 2, the message encoder 114is coupled to the SR controller 112 to receive the control signal fordetecting the switching frequency of the control signal. Therefore, themessage encoder can determine that the power converter system is in thedeep DCM condition when the switching frequency is lower than the deepDCM threshold value.

FIG. 8 shows another embodiment of a communication sequence of a flybackpower converter operating in a DCM condition, including the voltage(V_(S)) 52 on the voltage-sensing terminal, the switching signal (S_(W))42 from the primary side controller 30 and the switching signal (S_(W)_(_) _(SR)) 68 from the synchronous rectifier 60. In this embodiment,all the commands issued by the sink device require pre-defined waveformsof the voltage sensing signal (V_(S)) 52 during the discharge period132, corresponding to the pre-defined switching sequence of the SRswitch 64. In one example, the Constant Current (CC) mode implemented bythe current control circuit 102, is encoded as three pulses, theConstant Voltage (CV) mode implemented by the voltage control circuit100 is encoded as four pulses, and the protection mode implemented bythe protection circuit 104 is encoded as five pulses. As shown in FIG.8, the switching signal 68 is deactivated (e.g., pulsed) at 200 to causethe waveform distortion 202, at 204 to cause the waveform distortion 206and at 208 to cause the waveform distortion 210, thus encoding the CCmode.

In one variation to the embodiment in FIG. 8, the number of distortionsduring either the start of transfer 150 or the end of transfer 154, orboth, is one or more distortions. In another variation to the embodimentin FIG.8, the communication sequence does not have a start of transferstep 150 and end of transfer step 154, but rather only requires the datatransfer step 152. During the data transfer step 152, the synchronousrectifier controller transfers a message based on pre-defined waveformsof the voltage-sensing signal 52, and the primary side controller 30responses to the message based on pre-defined waveforms at thevoltage-sensing signal 52.

FIG. 9 shows a functional block diagram of a detection circuit 220according to an embodiment of the present invention. The detectioncircuit 220 of the primary side controller 30 comprises a discharge timedetection circuit 230, a turn-on detection circuit 260 and a logiccircuit 290, receiving an SMP1 output 232 from the discharge timedetection circuit 230, and an SMP2 output 262 from the turn-on detectioncircuit 260. The discharge time detection circuit 230 and the turn-ondetection circuit 260 are coupled to the voltage-sensing terminal toreceive the voltage-sensing signal (V_(S)) 52. The discharge timedetection circuit 230 detects the voltage-sensing signal 52 fordetecting the first zero-crossing point (e.g., valley point) as shown as190 in FIG. 7 and generating a signal SMP1 232 to define the end of thedischarge time 132. The start of the discharge time 132 is defined bythe falling edge 120 of the switching signal 42.

The turn-on detection circuit 260 measures the voltage-sensing signalfor detecting the start of the waveform distortion, and generates thesignal SMP2 262. The logic circuit receives the signals SMP1 232 andSMP2 262 to determine the presence of, and the number of, distortionsduring the discharge period 132, and further comprises a counter tocounter a number of distortions. In one embodiment, the logic circuit290 outputs the signal SMP 94 as a digitally encoded signal includingthe number of detected distortions. In another embodiment, the logiccircuit 290 outputs the signal SMP 94 for each distortion and themessage decoder of FIG. 2 includes a counter, to count the number ofdistortions.

FIG. 10 shows a circuit diagram of an embodiment of the discharge timedetection circuit 230. The discharge time detection circuit 230comprises a delay cell 236, a comparator 234, an offset voltage(V_(OS1)) 240, and a flip-flop 244 (e.g., a bistable device). The delaycell 236 delays the voltage-sensing signal (V_(S)) 52 to generate adelay signal (V_(SD)) 238. The voltage-sensing signal 52 is offset bythe offset voltage 240 to generate an offset signal (V_(S1)) 242. Thenegative input terminal and the positive input terminal of thecomparator 234 receive the offset signal 242 and the delay signal 238,respectively. The output terminal of the comparator 234 is coupled tothe reset terminal of the flip-flop 244 to reset the flip-flop 244 fordisabling the signal SMP1 232 when the delay signal 238 is higher thanthe offset signal 242. The time during which the SMP1 signal is highindicates the discharge time 132.

FIG. 11 shows a circuit diagram of an embodiment of the delay cell 236.In one embodiment, the delay cell comprises a resistor 248 and acapacitor 250. In another embodiment, the delay cell 236 includes adigital delay. FIG. 12 is a graphical view of the operation of thedischarge time detection circuit of FIG. 10, showing the detection ofthe end of the discharge period 132 by comparing the offset signal 242with a delay signal 238, both derived from the voltage-sensing signal52. The output SMP1 232 transitions when the offset signal 242 fallsbelow a value of the delay signal 238. The signal SMP2 is discussedbelow in the context of FIG. 14.

FIG. 13 shows an embodiment of the turn-on detection circuit 260. Theturn-on detection circuit 260 receives the voltage-sensing signal 52 ata positive terminal of a comparator 264. The voltage-sensing signal 52is further sampled by a blanking signal (S_(BNK)) 266 controlling aswitch to provide a sampled voltage 268, which is stored on a capacitor.The sampled voltage 268 is offset with an offset voltage (V_(OS2)) 270to create the offset sample (V_(S2)) 272, which is received at anegative terminal of the comparator 264. The output of the comparator264 is connected to the reset terminal of a flip-flop 274, (or similarbistable device).

Referring to FIG. 13 and FIG. 14, the flip-flop 274 is “SET” with aninverted signal of the falling edge 120 of the switching signal 42,causing a high state at the SET (S) input 246 to the flip-flop 274 andthereby causing SMP2 262 to switch to a high state. The output of thecomparator 264 switches to a high state when the voltage-sensing signal52 transitions higher than the offset sample 272 due to a waveformdistortion, thereby resetting the flip-flop 274 with a high state at theRESET input and causing the SMP2 signal to transition back to a lowstate at 278.

In another embodiment of the turn-on detection circuit 260, the SETinput of the flip-flop 274 is driven by an AND gate, with inputs fromthe inverted signal of the switching signal 42 and an inverted output(QB) 276 of the flip-flop 274, to allow detection of multiple waveformdistortions during the discharge period 132. For example, when theinverted signal of signal 42 transitions high (e.g., switching signal 42transitions low at 120) and QB is high, flip-flop 274 is SET, SMP2transitions high and QB transitions low, thus disabling the AND gate.When the flip-flop 274 is reset, QB momentarily transitions high, to SETthe flip-flop, causing QB to transition low and subsequently disable theAND gate.

Referring to FIG. 3, FIG. 7, FIG. 13 and FIG. 14, in another embodiment,where the power system operates in a deep DCM condition, the resonance126 (see also FIG. 3) during the start of transfer 150, does not cause areset of the flip-flop 274 because the offset sample 272 is sufficientlyhigher than the attenuated resonant waveforms 126. Detection of thestart flag 196 occurs after the discharge period 132 but is enabled tobe detected after the discharge period 132 by a gating signal providedto the logic circuit 290 that indicates that the deep DCM condition hasbeen detected. The gating signal is activated by comparing a frequencyof the switching signal 42 to a threshold frequency, (e.g., 100 Hz).

Referring to FIG. 12 and FIG. 14, the detection of the waveformdistortion of FIG. 14, as indicated by the falling edge 278 of SMP2 262,occurs prior to the end of the discharge period 132 defined by SMP1.When no waveform distortion is present, SMP2 262 remains high for theentire discharge period 132. Referring to FIG. 12, when SMP2 262transitions low at 252 after the end of the discharge period 132 (forexample due to the resonance 126 of FIG. 3),

SMP 94 will not consider a bit to have been received. In contrast, thefalling edge 254 of SMP2 262 in FIG. 12 occurs prior to the end of thedischarge period 132, thus will cause a waveform distortion (not shown)and be detected as a valid bit for the message decoder 96.

As will be appreciated, embodiments as disclosed include at least thefollowing. In one embodiment, a method for communicating with a powerconverter comprises initiating a communication sequence by sensing afirst distortion of a sensed waveform during a discharge period of afirst power transfer cycle of the power converter. The sensed waveformis proportional to a secondary current of the power converter. At aprimary side of the power converter a data bit is received from asecondary side of the power converter, by sensing a second distortion torepresent one state of the data bit and sensing an absence of the seconddistortion to represent another state of the data bit. The seconddistortion is applied to the secondary current during the dischargeperiod of a subsequent power transfer cycle.

Alternative embodiments of the method for communicating with a powerconverter include one or the following features, or any combinationthereof. The communication sequence is terminated by sensing the firstdistortion of the sensed waveform during the discharge period of a lastpower transfer cycle of the power converter. The first distortionincludes one or more pulses applied to the secondary current byinterrupting a path conducting the secondary current. The seconddistortion includes one or more pulses applied to the secondary currentby interrupting a path conducting the secondary current. Pluralities ofdata bits are received at the primary side, each data bit communicatedin a respective subsequent power transfer cycle. A deep DiscontinuousConduction Mode (DCM) state of the power converter is detected bycomparing a primary side switching frequency to a deep DCM thresholdvalue. A load of the power converter is increased in response todetecting the deep DCM state, and initiating the communication sequenceby sensing the first distortion of the sensed waveform after thedischarge period of the first power transfer cycle. A value of theprotection circuit is changed in response to receiving the data bit. Avalue of a regulation circuit is changed in response to receiving thedata bit.

In another embodiment, a method for communicating with a power convertercomprises receiving at a primary side of the power converter, a one ormore data bits from a secondary side of the power converter, by sensinga respective data distortion of a sensed waveform for each data bitduring a discharge period of power transfer cycle of the powerconverter. The sensed waveform is proportional to a secondary current ofthe power converter. The one or more data bits are decoded to determinea response of the power converter.

Alternative embodiments of the method for communicating with a powerconverter include one or the following features, or any combinationthereof. A communication sequence is initiated before receiving the oneor more data bits, by sensing a flag distortion of the sensed waveformduring the discharge period of a first power transfer cycle of the powerconverter, and the communication sequence is terminated after receivingthe one or more data bits by sensing the flag distortion of the sensedwaveform during the discharge period of a last power transfer cycle ofthe power converter. The response of the power converter includesregulating a constant current when three data bits are received, theresponse of the power converter includes regulating a constant voltagewhen four data bits are received, and the response of the powerconverter includes activating a protection mode when five data bits arereceived.

In another embodiment, a communication circuit for a power convertercomprises a primary circuit connected to a primary side of the powerconverter, and configured to sense a distortion of a waveform with adetection circuit to detect a data bit. The waveform is proportional toa secondary current of the power converter. A secondary circuit isconnected to a secondary side of the power converter, and configured toencode a protocol message as a data bit, wherein the protocol message isreceived from a sink device connected thereto, and to communicate thedata bit to the primary circuit by distorting the secondary current torepresent one state of the data bit and by not distorting the secondarycurrent to represent another state of the data bit.

Alternative embodiments of the communication circuit for a powerconverter include one of the following features, or any combinationthereof. The detection circuit includes a discharge time detectioncircuit configured to determine a discharge period of the secondarycurrent, a turn-on detection circuit configured to detect the distortionof the waveform, and a logic circuit configured to determine if thedistortion is detected during the discharge period. The discharge timedetection circuit includes a comparator configured to compare thewaveform delayed with a delay circuit to the waveform offset with anoffset circuit, an output of the comparator resetting a state of abistable device to determine an end of the discharge period. The turn-ondetection circuit includes a comparator configured to compare a sampledwaveform offset with an offset circuit to the waveform, an output of thecomparator resetting a state of a bistable device to determine the startof the distortion of the waveform. The primary circuit further comprisesa message decoder configured to decode at least one data bit todetermine a response, the response being at least one of changing avalue of a protection circuit and changing a value of a regulationcircuit. The secondary circuit includes a protocol decoder configured todecode a protocol message from the sink device, and a message encoderconfigured to encode the protocol message as one or more data bits, eachdata defined by a switching sequence of a synchronous rectifier switch.The synchronous rectifier switch is a same switch used by a synchronousrectifier controller configured to rectify the secondary current. Thesecondary circuit comprises a bleeder circuit configured to increase acurrent sink of the secondary current in response to the primary circuitdetecting a deep Discontinuous Conduction Mode.

Although the invention is described herein with reference to specificembodiments, various modifications and changes can be made withoutdeparting from the scope of the present invention as set forth in theclaims below. Accordingly, the specification and figures are to beregarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense, and allsuch modifications are intended to be included within the scope of thepresent invention. Any benefits, advantages, or solutions to problemsthat are described herein with regard to specific embodiments are notintended to be construed as a critical, required, or essential featureor element of any or all the claims.

Unless stated otherwise, terms such as “first” and “second” are used toarbitrarily distinguish between the elements such terms describe. Thus,these terms are not necessarily intended to indicate temporal or otherprioritization of such elements.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for communicating with a power convertercomprising: initiating a communication sequence by sensing a firstdistortion of a sensed waveform during a discharge period of a firstpower transfer cycle of the power converter, the sensed waveform beingproportional to a secondary current of the power converter; andreceiving at a primary side of the power converter, a data bit from asecondary side of the power converter by sensing a second distortion torepresent one state of the data bit and sensing an absence of the seconddistortion to represent another state of the data bit, the seconddistortion applied to the secondary current during the discharge periodof a subsequent power transfer cycle.
 2. The method of claim 1 furthercomprising terminating the communication sequence by sensing the firstdistortion of the sensed waveform during the discharge period of a lastpower transfer cycle of the power converter.
 3. The method of claim 1wherein the first distortion includes one or more pulses applied to thesecondary current by interrupting a path conducting the secondarycurrent.
 4. The method of claim 1 wherein the second distortion includesone or more pulses applied to the secondary current by interrupting apath conducting the secondary current.
 5. The method of claim 1 furthercomprising receiving at the primary side, a plurality of data bits, eachdata bit communicated in a respective subsequent power transfer cycle.6. The method of claim 1 further comprising detecting a deepDiscontinuous Conduction Mode (DCM) state of the power converter bycomparing a primary side switching frequency to a deep DCM thresholdvalue.
 7. The method of claim 6 further comprising increasing a load ofthe power converter in response to detecting the deep DCM state, andinitiating the communication sequence by sensing the first distortion ofthe sensed waveform after the discharge period of the first powertransfer cycle.
 8. The method of claim 1 wherein a value of a protectioncircuit is changed in response to receiving the data bit.
 9. The methodof claim 1 wherein a value of a regulation circuit is changed inresponse to receiving the data bit.
 10. A method for communicating witha power converter comprising: receiving at a primary side of the powerconverter, a one or more data bits from a secondary side of the powerconverter, by sensing a respective data distortion of a sensed waveformfor each data bit during a discharge period of power transfer cycle ofthe power converter, the sensed waveform being proportional to asecondary current of the power converter; and decoding the one or moredata bits to determine a response of the power converter.
 11. The methodof claim 10 further comprising: initiating a communication sequencebefore receiving the one or more data bits, by sensing a flag distortionof the sensed waveform during the discharge period of a first powertransfer cycle of the power converter, and terminating the communicationsequence after receiving the one or more data bits by sensing the flagdistortion of the sensed waveform during the discharge period of a lastpower transfer cycle of the power converter.
 12. The method of claim 10wherein: the response of the power converter includes regulating aconstant current when three data bits are received, the response of thepower converter includes regulating a constant voltage when four databits are received, and the response of the power converter includesactivating a protection mode when five data bits are received.
 13. Acommunication circuit for a power converter comprising: a primarycircuit connected to a primary side of the power converter, andconfigured to sense a distortion of a waveform with a detection circuitto detect a data bit, the waveform proportional to a secondary currentof the power converter; and a secondary circuit connected to a secondaryside of the power converter, and configured to encode a protocol messageas a data bit, wherein the protocol message is received from a sinkdevice connected thereto, and to communicate the data bit to the primarycircuit by distorting the secondary current to represent one state ofthe data bit and by not distorting the secondary current to representanother state of the data bit.
 14. The communication circuit of claim 13wherein the detection circuit includes a discharge time detectioncircuit configured to determine a discharge period of the secondarycurrent, a turn-on detection circuit configured to detect the distortionof the waveform, and a logic circuit configured to determine if thedistortion is detected during the discharge period.
 15. Thecommunication circuit of claim 14 wherein the discharge time detectioncircuit includes a comparator configured to compare the waveform delayedwith a delay circuit to the waveform offset with an offset circuit, anoutput of the comparator resetting a state of a bistable device todetermine an end of the discharge period.
 16. The communication circuitof claim 14 wherein the turn-on detection circuit includes a comparatorconfigured to compare a sampled waveform offset with an offset circuitto the waveform, an output of the comparator resetting a state of abistable device to determine the start of the distortion of thewaveform.
 17. The communication circuit of claim 13 wherein the primarycircuit further comprises a message decoder configured to decode atleast one data bit to determine a response, the response being at leastone of changing a value of a protection circuit and changing a value ofa regulation circuit.
 18. The communication circuit of claim 13 whereinthe secondary circuit includes a protocol decoder configured to decode aprotocol message from the sink device, and a message encoder configuredto encode the protocol message as one or more data bits, each datadefined by a switching sequence of a synchronous rectifier switch. 19.The communication circuit of claim 18 wherein the synchronous rectifierswitch is a same switch used by a synchronous rectifier controllerconfigured to rectify the secondary current.
 20. The communicationcircuit of claim 13 wherein the secondary circuit comprises a bleedercircuit configured to increase a current sink of the secondary currentin response to the primary circuit detecting a deep DiscontinuousConduction Mode.